A hen do game worth playing
Most hen do games are an activity you do while sitting down. A quiz, a set of printed cards, something involving a novelty straw. They fill twenty minutes and then everyone goes back to their phones.
Chase the Chickens is the night itself rather than a bit of it. One person hides in a bar somewhere inside an agreed boundary. Everyone else splits into teams and hunts her across the city on a live map, checking in at each bar with a photo. It gives the group a reason to actually move, and it gives the quieter half of the group something to do besides make conversation with strangers.
Why it works for a hen do
Mixes groups that do not know each other
Hen dos are usually three friendship groups who have never met — school, work, family. Random teams put people together with a shared objective, which does more for a group in twenty minutes than an icebreaker does in an hour.
Nobody has to perform
There is no forfeit round, no singing, no reading answers out to the group. The game is walking, looking at a map and taking photos. People who hate being the centre of attention can play it properly without dreading their turn.
You set the pace
Boundary size controls how much walking happens. A tight boundary around one neighbourhood suits heels and a two-hour window. A wider one turns it into a proper afternoon. Same game either way.
Drinking is optional
The check-in is a photo with a drink in hand — it does not have to be alcoholic, and the pot can cover soft drinks and coffee just as easily. Pregnant guests, drivers and non-drinkers can play without sitting anything out.
How a hen do runs
- 1
Planning
Whoever is organising sets a boundary around the area you are in, picks a duration and agrees a pot. Two to three hours suits a hen do better than a stag — it leaves room for dinner afterwards.
- 2
Starting bar
Everyone meets in one place. The app assigns the Chicken and splits the rest into teams. First round comes out of the pot, which gets the mixing started before anyone has to walk anywhere.
- 3
The head start
The Chicken leaves and settles into a bar for the duration. The chasers wait thirty minutes, which is enough time for a drink and for the teams to agree a search plan they will abandon immediately.
- 4
The search
Teams follow the map, check bars off, and upload a photo at each one. Wrong bar means a drink before moving on. The photos are the real output of the night — you finish with a camera roll of the whole group in eight different places.
- 5
Finishing
Whoever finds the Chicken first joins her and starts on the rest of the pot. Everyone converges on the same bar as the clock runs down, which conveniently puts the whole group in one place for dinner.
Hen do questions
- How many people does a hen do version need?
- Six upwards. Eight to sixteen is the sweet spot — enough for three or four teams, small enough that the group can still get a table together at the end.
- Should the bride be the Chicken?
- Making the bride the Chicken means she spends the game sitting in one nice bar while everyone else walks. Some brides want exactly that. Others want to be out in it. Decide before you open the app, because it assigns randomly.
- Does it work if some of the group are not drinking?
- Yes. The check-in needs a photo with a drink, not a photo with a pint. Soft drinks count, and the pot can cover them.
- Is there a version that is not centred on bars?
- The game runs on whatever venues are inside your boundary. Cafes, a market, a park with kiosks — if there are places to check in, the mechanic works. Bars are just the most common answer.
- How much does it cost?
- Nothing. There is no booking fee and no per-person charge. The only money is the pot the group agrees between themselves, and you drink that.